In 1870-72, John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales described Black Country like this:
BLACK COUNTRY (The), a tract of mines and ironworks in the S of Stafford, and on the N verge of Warwick. It extends chiefly from Wolverhampton to Birmingham, south-eastward, 13 miles; and from Dudley to Walsall, north-eastward, 7 miles. "The name is eminently descriptive, for blackness everywhere prevails. The ground is black, the atmosphere is black, and the underground is honey-combed by mining galleries stretching in utter blackness for many a league. The scene is marvellous, and to one who beholds it for the first time by night, terrific.,"
Black Country through time
Black Country is now part of Sandwell district. Click here for graphs and data of how Sandwell has changed over two centuries. For statistics about Black Country itself, go to Units and Statistics.
GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth, History of Black Country, in Sandwell and Staffordshire | Map and description, A Vision of Britain through Time.
URL: https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/25341
Date accessed: 26th April 2024
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